Akinwande Oluwole “Wole” Babatunde Soyinka was born on July 13, 1934, in Abeokuta, near Ibadan in western Nigeria. He is a remarkable man. He has lived a full and eventful life, and he is still living it.

Today, being his birthday, here are some facts about Wole Soyinka that you probably didn’t now:

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1. 1. He is the cousin of the late revolutionary African musician Fela Kuti.
   2. Wole Soyinka has been arrested a couple of times. His experiences in prison are recounted in his 1972 book “The Man Died: Prison Notes of Wole Soyinka”.
   3. He was named Commander of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1986 by General Ibrahim Babangida.
   4. Wole was the first African to win the Nobel Prize for Literature.
   5. Wole was among the founders of the first Confraternity (Pyrate Confraternity) in Nigeria.The group is still in existence.
   6. He is referred to as “the conscience of the nation”. He is ever ready to fight against injustice in the country.
   7. He married three times, divorced twice.
   8. In 2014, Soyinka revealed he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and cured 10 months after treatment.
   9. Wole Soyinka’s most popular book is Death and the King’s Horseman: A Play.

Happy Birthday to you, Professor Wole Soyinka. You are one of the most significant African literary Icons!

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